The age of cycle paths in Graz began with a nocturnal action staged before a large cycling demonstration in 1980. A group of cycling activists including spatial planner Günther Tischler had learned of the effectiveness of citizens’ initiatives in Berlin and felt that progress was too slow in the transport policy for Graz. They used a self-made stencil to mark a cycle path on the Wilhelm-Fischer-Allee in the city park. The then city planning councillor Erich Edegger, who was himself working on alternative transport concepts at the political level despite much resistance, seized this opportunity and allied himself with the activists, implementing a bold transport policy for Graz. Today the city still benefits from innovations such as cycling against the one-way system and 30 km/h speed limits.
The First Graz Cycle Path, 1980, 1980
AVG – Alternative Verkehrspolitik Graz / Günther Tischler, Gottfried Weißmann, Norbert Kotzurek, Franz Holzer, Peter Hagenauer, Walter Lendl
Photos: Viktor Pölzl
With thanks to Wolfgang Wehap
